Nothing Gold Can Stay
by Redvines69
Summary: FanFiction based on camp half-blood from the Percy Jackson book series, with own characters. Disclaimer: Some of the characters are not mine, and the title is from a poem as a few of you may notice, and I don't own the idea of camp half-blood.
1. 01 Fire Alarms

**A/N **So basically I'm using Camp Half-Blood and a few characters from the original Percy Jackson books-readers had a chance to create a character too.

Like I said, I'd mention the names of the readers who created a character so they get credit-Alexandria (Alex) Jones was created by GabzieMoritz27

* * *

**Chapter One: Fire Alarms**

**Melody's POV:**

As soft as gravel, the piercing sound of a fire alarm echoes through the building. Great, another one of these.

Fire alarms are usually pointless and usually just a test. In the last five minutes of the last lesson of a Friday before the Summer holidays; they are bound to annoy you a lot.

Looking at the school building, it was fine. The whole school was, as usual, in all their various lines, kept silent by teachers who were just as angry as us.

It seemed like a normal fire alarm; not one a half-boy half-dryad had set off deliberately after discovering the head of behaviour was in fact a hellhound in disguise.

* * *

**Darius POV:**

He'd almost taken his true form and attacked. I threatened to break the glass on one of those emergency-fire-alarm things, and when he continued snarling every now and then whilst telling me off, I took my anger out on the glass. After that, I ran.

I knew four demigods were in this building; I knew I had to get them out. I'd have to side-track them. Somehow...

* * *

**Larka's POV:**

We were dismissed to go home, 10 minutes later than usual. There had been no fire, but the look on the head of behaviours' face made you think he'd explode into flame at any moment.

I waited for one of my best friends, Melody, near the front of school. When she came, she nodded past me.

"Aww, it's your boyfriend." She smirked.

I turned, seeing Darius leaning against a tree.

"Oh ha ha." I replied sarcastically._ I wish._ I added to myself.

Whilst I was distracted, a shadow seemed to loom over us. I heard people screaming, and running. I turned, seeing...something. I looked back to Darius in desparation. He'd disappeared.

The thing looming over us was a huge black dog, except it was literally and not metaphorically the size of an elephant. Its' eyes were like literal fire, only blood red as well. Me and Melody were standing there, staring as it snarled.

* * *

**Darius' POV:**

I scaled the tree. I prefer climbing buildings (secret Assassin by the way) but the trees would have to do.

I sighed, checking my hidden blades would come out in time, then dropped onto its' back to slit its' throat.

_The things I do for these demigods._

* * *

**Melody's POV:**

I closed my eyes to prevent dust going into my eyes, whilst sensing Larka flinching back. As suddenly as it had appeared, that thing had exploded.

Larka coughed. I opened my eyes, finding myself covered in ash. I looked at where the monster (as I decided it was) had been stood. Instead, there stood Darius, fiddling with some odd looking gloves. I could've sworn I'd seen a silvery glint from his sleeve, but I must have been mistaken.

"I'll explain later." He noticed our expressions. "For now, there's probably more of them. Will you help me?" He asked.

"This seems awesome. Fine." I replied.

"Okay!" Larka sounded enthusiastic about helping him. I rolled my eyes.

He dug in his pocket, and brought out a whistle.

After he blew it, a small dog came running up. At first I thought it was just a black labrador puppy: before I saw it had gold eyes, a purple tongue and silver-looking claws.

"Meet Ezio." There was a tone of affection in his voice. I also recognised the name from Assassins Creed; the game I don't play but Larka has many times. Suddenly, something made sense.

"You're an assassin." I blurted out. He looked a little taken aback.

"How do you kn-I mean, what are you on about?" His lie would've been convincing if I hadn't heard the shock at the start.

"It's easy to guess. Those gloves, the rumours about you climbing, and Ezio." Ezio yapped at his name and nuzzled up to my leg. I scratched him behind the ear.

Darius sighed. "Let's go find the others." Ezio seemed to hear, for he went bounding away, pausing every now and then to look back. We followed.

He led us to the beach of the river I'd sat to get some alone time very often. Except this time, I heard snarling.

There were four of them, closing in on two boys.

"Stay here." Darius scaled a boathouse.

I don't know why, but being told to 'stay put' annoys me. I stepped onto the beach, took a stone and threw it at the hellhounds, attracting their attention.

"Well that was clever." Larka said sarcastically. "What now?"

I shrugged. There was a small branch on the floor, so I jumped up and down on it a few times until it broke, now with a sharp point.

"Go join your little friend." I smirked. I don't know what had come over me, but I ran forward to fight the hellhounds.

* * *

**Darius' POV:**

The demigods that don't do what they're told. Fun.

Larka awkwardly was stood underneath the boathouse.

"Hey." I laid down, offering my hand. She took it gingerly, and I helped her up until she was sitting beside me.

Ezio seemed to laugh at us both in his own Labrador way.

* * *

**Melody's POV:**

The first two I stabbed exploded into dust, like the first one I'd seen. But the others realised.

As I tried to stab one, it grabbed my stick in its hand.

"Aw, do you want to play fetch, little doggy?" I laughed. Apparently it didn't like fetch. It growled. I stepped back, and it followed.

Then an idea dawned on me.

I backed into the water, planting my feet in the rocks to prevent the current knocking me over. It stopped and backed away from the water.

"Don't like water, huh?" I splashed it. Where it was splashed, it dissolved into dust.

I didn't have the time to splash more, as one of the boys had recovered.

The hole place seemed to light up, as electricity hit the hellhounds.

It didn't stop there.

As soon as it hit the water, conducting it to me, I blacked out.


	2. 02 Sunset

**A/N: This chapter is short, I'm gonna get to more of the story later on. I've been tired over the past few days and haven't had many ideas, but now I have more ideas so the chapters will be coming more. Had a bit of writers block-more real action _is_ coming! :)**

* * *

**Chapter Two: Sunset**

**Melody's POV:**

The light seemed oddly bright when I woke up. I sat up in alarm. I recognised what looked like a ferry nearby. I could smell the sea. What was I doing here? Where was everyone? My head felt as if a skyscraper had collapsed on it, and I could taste something burning.

* * *

**Darius' POV:**

I had explained to all of the other Demigods what they were. After using references to other moments in their lives and their human parents talking to them, they believed me.

Me, Dan and George (the two boys who were on the beach) had gone to the services to get refreshments. Larka and Melody's Dad-who'd driven us to the docks-stayed with Melody, who was still unconscious. Dan seemed worried and kept glancing out of the window. I knew he wanted her to wake up; he'd caused the electricity and he felt bad.

We headed back over to where they were. Melody had sat up. Dan practically ran over. I found it amusing how Melody's eyes widened when she saw him and George; rumour had it that she liked both of them. Something made me think I should believe those rumours.

Once Dan was convinced he hadn't hurt her, everybody in turn told her about demigods and that we were going to travel to a place called Camp Half-Blood. Melody seemed to be a fan of Greek myths, making her extremely easy to tell.

We all got ready to board the ferry, leaving Melody to say goodbye to her father. After a few moments she came over to us. She was smiling and seemed unfazed, as if she'd never had gods know how many volts of electricity through her.

* * *

**Melody's POV:**

It pleased me that Dan had been worried. _Mission accomplished_. It also pleased me that this camp was in America. We weren't boarding a ferry as such; just a small boat with a deck and a kitchen plus bunks below. A boy was already on it when we got on. He was a few years older, about Dan's age. He had untidy black hair and bright green eyes.

"Hey." He smirked. "I'm Percy." I didn't see much of him that night after that; he was putting energy into somehow seemingly controlling the waves to propel us along.

* * *

**Dan's POV:**

I wasn't so keen on being on the sea. I wasn't seasick as such, I just had a feeling I wasn't supposed to be there. Maybe it was because Percy was making us travel quite fast. I didn't know.

Me, George and Melody sat at the back of the boat. George was strumming at his guitar and talking with me, whilst Melody was quiet. She seemed shy around us. She just stared at the sea and the setting sun. I noticed her take her phone out and take a photo of the scene.

George stopped strumming. "I have a proper camera. Would you like to use that?" He looked at her. "Yes please." She replied. He put his guitar into its case and carried it below deck to trade it for the camera.

I noticed she'd just put headphones in. One headphone anyway. "What you listening to?" I asked.  
"Les Miserables songs." she replied.  
I sat next to her and put one of the headphones in my own ear, leaning against the side of the boat.

_This was quite a nice evening..._

* * *

**Darius' POV:**

I was up on the mast. I could see a lot from up here. Ezio yapped from the bottom. I saw Larka stepping up on deck. A thought occurred to me.

After wondering for a while, I climbed to a lower point. Then I leapt down, landing behind her. She jumped.

"Only me." I smirked. She sighed in relief. "Hi." She said. Ezio ran over, looking from me to her and back to me with what would be a raised eyebrow if he was human. I glared at him, then looked back at Larka.

A sudden impulse came over me, as I leant in to kiss her.


	3. 03 Dolphins

**A/N: Thank you for reviews :) well...two claimings in this chapter, and more stuff _is_ starting to happen!**

* * *

**Chapter Three: Dolphins**

**Percy's POV:**

After the sun had set, I willed the waves to calm and hold us in place. I'd Iris-messaged Annabeth and Grover at camp to tell them we were on our way.

Everyone was below deck, where there was a tiny kitchen then two tables on each side. The boat was only a few meters wide and long, but I liked it. My mother had saved up for it from her wages.

There was a small passageway between both tables. Darius and Larka sat at one table, seemingly lost in conversation and oblivious to everyone except Ezio who appeared amused. I sat with everyone else, talking about random things.

Everything there got quite stressful. I was also glad everyone was mature in the way they weren't constantly asking me irritating questions like 'have you ever met a mermaid?' (I speak from experience from that one-although the girl who asked is now twelve instead of eight and we have a laugh about it nowadays.)

Darius and Larka suddenly remembered everyone else existed. "I'm bored." Darius declared. "Percy, what was the game Leo told you about?"

Leo was our friend, and also a son of Hephaestus. In addition to that, he was immune to fire and enjoyed playing 'the matchbox' story game, which was easy for him as he had no pressure. Basically, once you lit the match you had to say one memory out loud. However, when you're under pressure you generally say something very interesting to others yet awkward to you.

"The matchbox game." I had no desire to play with matches. But everyone was bored, so I sighed, before slipping to the kitchen to get some matches.

It's interesting what you find out from people from that time span: Dan's first school play, George's first sight of a guitar. The first drawing Melody did. Darius and Larka both remembered from different perspectives when he helped her atop a boathouse. I myself mentioned the first time I wore armour and held Riptide.

"So you're Poseidon's son." Melody seemed to say it like a statement, with a questioning tone to her voice. "Indeed I am." I smirked at her.

"What's Darius?" Asked Larka. Darius seemed to suddenly get embarrassed, and pulled away. He also looked slightly annoyed.

"Well...he's half human and half something, but not half god like us." I began. He glared, so I shut up.

"What other sorts of things are there at camp?" Melody changed the subject. I got the idea she sensed tenseness and was trying to break it away.

"Mostly Demigods. But there are quite a few dryads and satyrs. Even a centaur and a cyclops. The cyclops is my brother." I let pride seep into my tone when I mentioned my younger brother, Tyson. I'd had demigods before who would've laughed or questioned, but when these sensed it they remained silent, although looking slightly confused.

"So how do you find out who your godly parent is?" Melody broke the silence after a few moments. "You get claimed." I replied. "There's always some sort of sign. It's usually a symbol above your head."

* * *

**Melody's POV:**

I was most worried about night time. The bunks were 3 on each side, with a few feet in between them like the distance between the two tables. I was worried because we were in a confined space and I was prone to sleep talking.

Nonetheless, as much as I told myself I wouldn't sleep to prevent me sleeptalking, as soon as I curled up in the bunk I felt my consciousness slip.

_I was running. Through a maze...it was so dark. Snarls echoed from behind me, ever pursuing me. There was a painting of some sort of woman on the wall, before a forked tunnel. One glowed gold and the other was pitch black, almost like this corridor. I went for the gold one. When I came to a huge room I realised; It had been a trap! Thousands of monsters-warm and foul smelling-seemed to pounce on my, crushing my bones with their weight, tearing my flesh to shreds..._

I woke up shivering. It was dark, but I had a feeling I was moving. I could hear waves lapping against the side of the boat. It was cool and peaceful. I was on a boat surrounded by nice people, instead of in a room full of unknown monsters. Still, I shuddered in remembrance of that dream.

Careful not to disturb anyone, I pulled some clothes on over my pyjamas and put my trusty old high-top trainers on. I headed up onto the deck.

"Couldn't sleep?" I was startled to hear a voice, but I realised it was just Percy. "Nightmare." I admitted. "Ah." He looked sympathetic. "Demigods get used to them."

I nodded, a chill going down my spine.

* * *

**Dan's POV:**

I woke the next morning to the sound of some sort of creature chattering. I looked around and remembered where I was. The creature sounded like...dolphins?

I went into the cabin beyond the bunks for privacy to get changed, then went up on deck.

Sure enough, there _were_ dolphins. Darius was climbing on the mast, whilst Percy, Melody and George were looking and seemingly talking to some dolphins. Larka and Ezio seemed to be sleeping still. The dolphins leapt up and flipped, performing all sorts of tricks whilst Percy and George seemed to click at them. One leapt up and touched noses with Melody. She giggled, then turned. Her facial expression changed slightly when she saw me.

"Hey Dan!" George grinned. "Hello!" I smirked. "How do you do that?" Melody wondered after Percy and George spoke to the dolphins a little more.

"Me? They're sea creatures. My Dad's the sea god. But George..." Percy's gaze drifted to George. "I don't know."

No sooner had he said that, the sunlight seemed to change slightly. Then I saw; a sign above George's head. Some sort of ancient musical instrument in front of a golden glowing sun. It was slightly shocking to see my best friend suddenly have that appearing. I felt my hands tingle a little, and noticed electricity sparking from my bitten nails. Ah well.

"George. It looks like you've been claimed." Percy said. "It _does_ make sense now."  
"Hm? Who's my Dad then?" George didn't look up as he clicked at the dolphins again. "Apollo. God of the sun, music, poetry and healing. His patron animal is mentioned as the dolphin a lot."

"He's not the only one who's been claimed." Melody said quietly, her gaze meeting mine. I could sense and half see a light above my head, but was infuriated when I couldn't see. Percy gasped in shock. "What? What is it?"  
"A lightning bolt." Melody said simply. "Think it means Zeus."  
"Yes. It does." Percy had an edge to his voice I couldn't quite understand.

The dolphins chattered. That was when I noticed a shoreline in the distance. Even I could tell they didn't want to go too close to shore. I myself would be was when Larka stumbled on deck. Out of nowhere, Darius seemed to appear behind us. I could've sworn something was happening between those we were closer to the shore, I could make out five figures on the beach.

"Well, we're almost here." Percy gestured ahead. "Welcome to Camp Half-Blood."


	4. 04 Camp Half-Blood

**A/N:**** Sorry I've taken so long to update, been quite tired as school has been literally draining my mental energy. But anyway chapter four at last :)**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Camp Half-Blood**

**Percy's POV:**

In movies you often see camps where everyone is the same-dressed the same, act the same-but it was obvious that wasn't true. That defines camp-different people, all from various backgrounds, with various tastes but one thing in common: they're all Demigods or something magical of some sort.

I was glad to see Annabeth, finding it amusing to see her pacing impatiently. Her half-sister Alex, who had the same mother (Athena), leant against a tree quietly smirking at her. Grover was chewing sweets with their wrappers still on-I noticed he had a hat covering his horns and jeans covering his goat legs. One of the newer camp members, Jacob, a son of Hecate, also stood there. We'd become quite good friends with him since last summer when the Hecate cabin had been built. I was most surprised to see Thalia, as I hadn't seen her in camp for a few years since she joined the huntresses of Artemis.

After I helped everyone get their luggage from the boat, I ran straight to Annabeth. When Grover mimicked being sick, I gave him a rude hand gesture.

* * *

**Darius' POV:**

Whilst Percy seemed occupied, I decided to introduce the new campers to everyone. Percy and Annabeth had started snogging, causing Alex to say 'Get a room!' meaning the lovebirds both ran off. Typical.

"Sorry about them." She smiled at the new campers.  
"So, have any of you been claimed?"  
"Those two." I pointed at Dan and George.  
"Who by?" Grover joined in the conversation, still chewing on sweet wrappers.  
"Zeus and Apollo."  
"_What?_" Thalia looked up.  
"Zeus and Apollo." I repeated.  
Thalia recovered from her moments shock.  
"Well," She began. "That isn't very common. But welcome to the family. I'm a child of Zeus too." Dan nodded in response.

* * *

We took the new campers to the big house to be introduced to camp. After they knew the basics, I took Melody and Larka into a different room. The room we went to had been created for claimings, as gods were supposed to claim Demigods soon after arrival. Gods didn't always keep to this, so we took Demigods into the room to do a few random tests to give us an idea without the claiming and to pass time (any idea we have still isn't official so we still have to wait.) It gets boring; once I had to stay in this room for 12 hours before someone finally realised I was half dryad instead of half God.

Larka instantly went to a computer/tablet thing that was full of a bunch of complicated stuff. I watched in interest, to see if anything would happen once she finished. Sure enough, a metallic looking cat appeared from the corner and meowed with a mechanical voice. I had to restrain an 'awwwww' from coming out: I'm a sucker for cute animals, but ssh. Instead, I thought of something else to say. "You know, the Hephaestus kids were looking fo-" I trailed off as a holographic hammer appeared above her head. She looked confused, so I continued. "The Hephaestus kids were looking for a sibling who would computer code for them so loads of their mechanical devices could come to life-I think they've found one." After I said that, she seemed to realise she'd been claimed, just as the sign faded.

* * *

**George's POV:**

After learning more about the camp-which looked quite fun-Grover led me to Apollo cabin. I said goodbye to Dan for a while as he went to the Zeus cabin with Thalia; Alex waited behind for the others. Jake had got bored and left, telling us he'd meet us at dinnertime.

After Grover knocked, a girl opened the door. The only similarity we had was dark brown hair- other than that, she bared no resemblance of me. She smiled kindly.  
"Yes?"  
"New Apollo camperrr." Grover made a bleating sound on the 'R' of camper.  
"Ah, alright. Come in." She opened the door.

I stepped in, saying goodbye to Grover. He smirked before telling us he was going to ambush Annabeth and Percy. Me and the girl laughed, before she shut the door.

To the side of the door was a staircase, although from the outside it didn't look like it was a 2 storey building. I could hear voices from upstairs. The room I was in, however, was painted in golds, oranges, yellows and reds. There were about five desks, one bookshelf (most of the books looked like poetry), but what interested me the most was an abundance of musical instruments. There were two pianos, one keyboard, a bunch of stringed instruments (including guitars-one of my favourite things), a collection of microphones, a drum kit and many others, some of which I couldn't recognise.

"So, what's your name?" The girl who was apparently my half sister asked.  
"George. And you?"  
"I'm Connie." She smiled brightly. I noticed she seemed extremely smiley and optimistic, which would be good to be around.  
"So, you're from England? I've never been there." She said. I nodded in response whilst admiring a guitar. I placed my own guitar, still in its case, with all the instruments.  
"You play guitar? That's cool. Apollo's God of music along with other things-his children can usually play an instrument or sing."

"I prefer guitar, but I'm alright at piano playing. I sing too-and write my own songs." You know sometimes when you're talking to someone you've only just met, and you end up talking about similar interests and realise you're going to get on well?

That's how I felt even before meeting the others.

* * *

**Dan's POV:**

Thalia had decided she'd move across from the Artemis cabin (which was built in honour of Artemis and was a place for the huntresses to stay on the apparently rare occasion they were in camp-Artemis didn't have any Demigod children) to stay with me in Zeus' instead. I at first told her I didn't mind sleeping alone, but she told me, "The statue is disconcerting-you'll want company." When I saw what she meant-a tall statue of Zeus with piercing eyes that followed you across the room-I decided I'd prefer her company. By statue, I don't mean an ancient, weather-worn stony-eyed statue. I mean a realistically painted, full colour statue.

Thalia put both our sleeping bags in an aclove that Zeus' eyes didn't reach.  
"More of a temple than a cabin." I remarked.  
"Tell me about it. Artemis' is more comfortable, but to be honest its a little lonely. Besides, I haven't had a brother in a while." She seemed to drift into thought after that.

* * *

**Larka's POV:**

Darius led me out of the room. Alex was waiting outside.  
"Hephaestus." He answered her questioning expression.  
She nodded. "And what about Melody?"  
"Still unclaimed. Can you wait with her whilst I take Larka to her cabin?"  
"Sure." Alex went into the room we'd just left. I followed Darius outside.

* * *

We went past a few cabins before reaching a very technological-looking cabin. Darius knocked. The door was answered by a boy with black curls, a smudge of soot on his face and calloused hands.  
"Hey Leo." Darius seemed to know him. I decided that made this boy alright instantly.  
"'Sup. New camper?"  
"Yes." "The others are working now. Nice on the boat, by the way."  
Darius and I froze. _How did he know?_  
"Well, come in, don't just stand there!" He smirked.

I stepped inside the very mechanical-looking cabin, side-by-side with Darius.

* * *

**Melody's POV:**

"Hey." After I heard a voice, I looked up, startled from a book I'd just started to read about Greek myths. I then recognised Alex.  
"Hi." I replied.  
"You can read?" She sounded slightly surprised.  
"Yeah..." I tried not to make it sound too much like it was an obvious answer.  
"You probably find that an odd question. Sorry-I'm used to most other campers. They're dyslexic-even other Athena children. I'm the only one in my cabin who isn't."  
"Oh, okay then." I replied. That made sense now.

A cough came from the corner, startling us both. A woman who looked to be in her twenties was sat on a chair in the corner. Alex seemed to recognise her-I, however, didn't. She seemed a little bit familiar, with dark hair and stormy grey eyes; from my brief meeting of Annabeth earlier, I realised they had resemblence.

"Athena?" Alex whispered. "Hello." The woman stood up. "Sorry to startle you-I have a message. The message falls at the same time as a claiming, so I thought I'd come here."  
"A claiming?" I questioned.  
"Yes." She handed me a mirror, which seemed to appear from nowhere.  
"Aim it above your head." Above my head hovered a silvery holographic owl.  
"So I'm a child of-" I began.  
"Me. Athena." Athena smiled at me.  
"So, what was the message?" Alex seemed to have recovered from her shock.  
"There will be a prophecy soon-it's important." Athena checked her watch. "Well, I do believe you have dinner to attend."

"Don't look!" Alex turned away, so I followed suit.

When I turned back, Athena had gone.


	5. 05 Prophecies

**A/N: In this story, the labyrinth hasn't collapsed like it did in the books. Just thought I'd say that before you read the next few chapters** **:)**

* * *

**Chapter Five: Prophecies**

**Melody's POV:**

It was hard to register I'd just met my mother, as I sat with Annabeth, Alex and a few other siblings. I was deep in thought as dinner passed, and when my head hit the pillow I instantly fell asleep.

The next morning I spoke to my other siblings more, finding out the others' names were Lizzie, Tom and Dean. Morning activities were fun-archery and canoeing. I always put too much power on the bowstring in archery: irritating all the dryads living in trees behind the targets.

I was better at canoeing, where I paired up with Alex, who was quite skilled and taught me a few things I didn't know. I mostly understood canoeing as I'd done it a few times, so we were soon able to relax and talk whilst canoeing.

She explained about the camp oracle-Rachel-and how prophecies were given before quests. Apparantly it couldn't be good that a Goddess came to personally warn us. Alex decided she was going to go to Chiron at dinner about it, so I agreed to go with her.

* * *

**Larka's POV:**

Hephaestus cabin was running activities in the craft centre all day. I sat at the computer coding automatons some campers had made that connected to computers for directions. I walked around looking at peoples non-mechanical work as well, offering advice. Darius had come to visit me (Leo sniggered at this a lot) but I was fine talking to him all day.

After lunchtime, the Athena cabin came down, which included Melody. I hadn't seen her to talk to since yesterday. We spoke briefly, and she laughed at me and Darius, before she went to the sculpting part of the room.

After the last cabin had been through the workshop, I headed for dinner. Hephaestus cabin had apparantly dropped in members quite rapidly, leaving only four members. This meant our table wasn't as cramped as some of the others. I couldn't help glancing across at Darius more often than I should during dinner, and after dinner he came straight over.  
"Ooh la la." Leo teased before walking away to join the Aphrodite girls.

* * *

**Alex's POV:**

We hadn't told any of the other Athena kids about Athena appearing last night. Annabeth seemed suspicious. I stood, saying I needed to talk to Chiron about getting Melody a weapon (which was partly true, but wasn't the main reason I was going to talk to him) Annabeth nodded, but watched us with narrowed eyes.

"What do you brats want?" Just like Dionysus to be so charmingly kind when we approached the table him and Chiron were at.  
"To talk to Chiron." I replied evenly.  
"Hello?" Chiron looked up before Dionysus could say or do anything else.  
"I was wondering if we can get Melody a weapon." I knew if I openly asked to talk to Chiron alone, Mr D would order it to be in front of him as well.

"Ah. Okay. Come along now." We followed Chiron out of the pavillion.  
When we were out of earshot, Chiron turned. "Is that all you wanted to ask?" He gave me a knowing look.  
"Not really. Athena visited and claimed Melody in person."  
"What did she say?" Chiron knew the Gods well.  
"She said that there's to be a prophecy soon."  
"Ok. Well, Melody should visit Rachel soon." Chiron turned to leave.  
"What about my weapon?" Melody called after him.  
"Rachel isn't that scary." He chuckled.  
"Oh, I'm sure she's not. I just wouldn't mind a weapon in general."  
"Well, Alex knows where the weapons are." Chiron headed back to the pavilion.

"So, weapons or prophecy first?" I asked.  
Melody wondered a moment. "Prophecy seems more important."  
"Alright." I knew my way up the hill a little to the cave where Rachel would be.

* * *

**Melody's POV:**

There was a purple velvet curtain across the entrance of the cave.  
"Hello?" Alex called. I wasn't expecting the normality of when the curtain was drawn.  
"Yes?" The girl who appeared had frizzy red hair and wore normal but worn-down clothes that were covered in doodles of random sorts. Behind her were things that looked like a normal teenagers' room-TV, iPod docking station, clothes strewn everywhere. The only thing that not every teenager has-but were still regular-were loads of paintings scattered about.

"Oh, hey Alex." Rachel turned and narrowed her eyes slightly at me.  
"I haven't seen you before." She stated.  
"I'm new." I replied.  
"Ah. So what are you two after?"  
"Athena says we need a prophecy."  
"Okay. Well, you've already approached-the seeker may ask." Her already green eyes seemed to have a slight glow of a different, more luminous shade of green.

I looked at Alex, who looked at me and nodded, before stepping back. I had a sense I should ask-but I didn't know what.

"What was Athena warning us about?" I heard myself ask.

Rachel's eyes turned fully luminous green then, and she spoke in a voice that wasn't like her own.

_**"Eight shall travel, Though mysteries that unravel.**_  
_**Into the dark of the labyrinth, To find a goddess and a nymph. **_  
_**Will they overpower the goddess of power, Will they do it by the right hour. **_  
_**Child of Zeus' final sight of light, Another's final step into the night."**_

Alex ran forward to catch her as she lurched forward, choking. The luminous green had faded from Rachel's eyes.

I stood, frozen.

_Child of Zeus' final sight of light._

The only thing I could think of is how Dan was a child of Zeus.


	6. 06: Shadows before it's begun

**A/N:** **Loads of stuff has been happening lately, haven't been in the right frame of mind to write-but here's the next chapter, enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter Six: A shadow before it's begun**

**Dan's POV:**

At the campfire, Chiron had an announcement for everyone. Something seemed important. I listened closely.

"It appears," He began. "That Athena visited two of her children last night to warn them about a prophecy."  
The word '_prophecy_' got everyone's attention. The campfire seemed to burn the colour of interest-whatever that may be, I don't know.

"The prophecy was told by Rachel earlier." He nodded towards where a red-headed girl was sat. She just grinned, looking relaxed and un-oracle like. He then looked at Melody and Alex.

"Can you tell me what the prophecy was?"

Melody seemed to grow pale. Nonetheless, she shakily began to speak.

"Eight shall travel, through mysteries that unravel.  
Into the dark of the labyrinth, To find a goddess and a nymph.  
Will they overpower the goddess of power, Will they do it by the right hour..."

She drew a sharp breath, and seemed to be shaking uncontrollably. She tried to speak the rest of the prophecy, but the words didn't seem able to slip off her tongue. Alex rested a hand on her shoulder, then made eye contact with Rachel. They both nodded, as Rachel came and escorted Melody to sit with her.

"Child of Zeus' final sight of light, Another's final step into the night." The words Alex finished sent a chill through my spine.

"It appears we need a quest. Dionysus has already given permission." Chiron said. He glanced at where Melody sat. The whole camp was silent. The campfire burnt a low black colour.

Chiron sighed. "We will discuss this tomorrow morning-you can all go to bed now."

* * *

I ignored Zeus-statue's piercing gaze as I slumped down into my sleeping bag. Why had Melody reacted so much? I'd never seen her like that. .

Thalia came in after me. She'd washed the thick black eyeliner away from her eyes, and looked so different.  
"Hey." She said.  
"Hi." My voice was thick, and unlike my usual bright tone.  
"Bothered about the prophecy? It's probably going to be neither of us going, just some randomer they meet on the quest. Apparently Melody's supposed to lead it. The quest leader chooses who goes. People are allowed to volunteer, of course..." She trailed off, pausing a moment before continuing. "I doubt she'd choose you to go in fear of the prophecy." Thalia spoke more gently for this sentence.

"Hm?" I wasn't quite following what she meant.

"You don't see anything at all, do you?" She laughed a little, turning over in her sleeping bag, leaving me unsuccessfully wondering what she meant.

* * *

**Darius' POV:**

The next morning, everybody was allowed to take breakfast beside the lake as it was a nice place for announcements. I knew that the quest would be given out today. Nobody had to sit in cabins or any groups, so everybody was with their friends. I found Larka, and we went to sit with Percy, Annabeth, Alex, Melody, Grover and Jacob. I hadn't seen Jacob for a couple of days, so I was glad to see him.

Chiron didn't hesitate to begin talking: we'd hardly sat down when he spoke. "Athena seemed to choose the quest leader. Melody Redmayne," I noticed Melody freeze. I don't think she was expecting him to know her last name. "Will you accept being our quest leader?"

A few whispers and glances spread around the camp. I knew people weren't used to new campers leading quests, although it *had* happened before. Melody stood up. She still seemed a little shaky, but in a strong tone she replied, "Yes."

Chiron beckoned her to come down. "Our oracle foresaw eight should go on the quest. We have one...it's up to the leader to choose the seven others. Or listen to any volunteers." He then leant down and whispered something to Melody. A hushed silence spread around the area as everyone waited.

* * *

**Melody's POV:**

"Choose wisely. Maybe choose four and wait for three volunteers if it would be easier." Chiron had whispered. I nodded.

Everyones attention on me was awkward, and made it harder to think. I thought about what I'd heard about quests from people in my cabin.

_People in my cabin. Choose wisely_.

"Alex and Annabeth." I began. They both stood up and walked down to stand with me, smiling. The crowd murmured. I thought again, remembering old stories.  
"Percy." He also joined us, putting his arm around Annabeth. Loads of people rolled their eyes after this. I wondered who else. I'd chosen three...the next two names that came to mind, it would be cruel to separate them. "Darius and Larka." I smirked slightly after saying it. They joined me. I looked at Chiron, and said quietly, "That's it."

"It appears we have six people. Two more volunteers are needed." He announced.

The crowd spoke, before five people stood up.

I knew three of the five. Dan, George and Jacob. I thought of the prophecy.

_i don't want Dan to get hurt. I don't want George to get hurt. I_-

I pushed away the thoughts of Jacob that had been grating the edges of my mind.  
"Jacob." I decided. Then I studied the two others who I didn't know, a tall girl with stringy brown hair and an arrogant air about her, and a boy with dark curls who didn't seem able to stand still. I recognised him as a member of the Hephaestus cabin.

"Leo and Clarisse." Percy whispered in my ear.

I could guess who was who. "Leo." I said.

The girl, Clarisse, went storming off. Leo seemed to practically bounce down to join us.

"The quest leaves after dinner!" Chiron let us get prepared.

* * *

**Percy's POV:**

Me and Darius led Larka and Melody down to the shed full of weapons.

"Choose whatever feels right." I said, staring around at all the cobwebbed weapons.

After a while of rummaging, Larka found a large sword with a dragon's head carved into the hilt. A single glowing purple stone was in one eye. The eye disconcerted me a little. Melody also found more than one weapon; a small, thin-bladed sword and a dagger. I thought about what training they'd need for later on as I led them both with their new weapons down to the training arena.

* * *

After a few hours of training, we stopped for a break. I brought cans of mountain dew around (I always have a supply of blue mountain dew) to get us our energy back. I told everybody a basis of what they'd need, so we all set off to pack our things.

* * *

**Dan's POV:**

Me and George sat together in silence near the woods.  
_Why hadn't we been chosen to go?_ I suppose I wasn't too bothered about not being chosen, I just wondered why. And I wondered about what Thalia said last night.

I heard a twig snap behind me.

Mine and George's heads whipped around.

Another camper stood there. I recognise her as the other volunteer who wasn't chosen for the quest.

"Hey. Name's Clarisse." She had an arrogant tone to her gruff voice.  
"Hi." I replied.  
"Any of you fancy breaking some rules?" She sat beside us.  
"Hm...what?" George said.  
"You heard me. Fancy following them? I plan to join their quest-help them even-_don't_ tell Jackson I said that, by the way. You see, I can't go alone, and my cabin would blab." She slyly looked at us.

I sighed, thinking a moment. "Alright then." I replied.

George looked around. "Fine."

"Cool. Meet me at the training ground when _they've_ finished. Pack now." She instructed us, before going into the woods.

I exchanged a glance with George before we left.


	7. 07: Quest

**Chapter Seven: Quest**

**Melody's POV:**

I hadn't chosen Clarisse because her arrogant demeanour annoyed me and she didn't seem the most friendly. No other members of the eight questioned that. When Larka asked me why I hadn't chosen George or Dan, I didn't reply. I just shrugged.

I knew well it was quite a selfish action when I didn't choose George and Dan. I knew we all could have used their help. But in truth, I wanted to keep them both safe. The prophecy scared me. I'd spent enough of last night haunted by images from it. If Dan didn't go on the quest, those images wouldn't happen, right?

After dinner, all eight of us met outside the big house. We'd packed a large backpack each, and had weapons hidden. Needle (which was what I'd named my sword) was strapped on to my bag-hidden between my bag and my back. The dagger was strapped to my wrist, underneath my sleeve. I made sure the blade was fully sheathed: I'm squeamish around sharp objects near my wrists.

It seemed slightly unreal as we left camp and were driven to New York by a man who was covered in eyes. When we reached New York, I couldn't help but admire it. Tonight, we were spending the night in Manhattan, where Percy's Mum (well, he says 'Mom'- I personally am not used to talking like an American. We've had a long debate about that) had just bought a house and we could stay the night. The next morning, we'd be going to a labyrinth entrance. I was oddly excited- a kind of crazy rush.

* * *

**Percy's POV:**

My main worry was not being able to find our way. This time, we had no sight of a clear-sighted mortal with us.

We hopped on the subway to Manhattan. I knew all the British demigods were in awe of the city. I was so used to it that I didn't really care about the lights and skyscrapers. Melody had been taking loads of snapshots on her phone of random things. I was almost glad to be underground on a plain train where she couldn't find anything of interest to photograph; the sound of blackberry camera shutters irritates me.

When we reached Manhattan, me and Annabeth led everyone to my Mom's house. I remembered when it was once a flat; I felt a surge of pride as I thought of how my Mom had finally brought herself the real house, even though it wasn't the mansion she deserved. She'd had her first novel published, which brought in a fair amount of money.

I knocked on the door. Mom had been expecting us, as I'd called her on Annabeth's phone when we were on the train. She opened the door before I'd even finished knocking.

"Percy!" She smiled, and brought me in for a hug. Most kids are embarrassed when their mothers do this, but I never am. "Hey Mom." I grinned. I could smell soap mixed in with cooking and sweets from the sweet shop she'd still stuck to having a part time job at.

When she let go, she greeted Annabeth and smiled at all of the others, before inviting us all inside.

* * *

**Dan's POV:**

I wasn't usually one to break rules, but this quest felt important somehow.

That night, I glanced towards where Thalia was sleeping. I hadn't zipped up my sleeping bag, but had a blanket over me to cover the fact it was unzipped, and that I was already dressed.

I carefully slipped out of my sleeping bag, and grabbed my bag. Many nights of sneaking out to visit George worked to my advantage, but Zeus still glared at me in a disapproving manner, as if he knew what I was doing.

Once I was outside the door, I zipped up my brown boots and pulled my beanie hat onto my head.

As if it was just meeting George to spend time together, instead of spending time with him and Clarisse shadowing a quest.

* * *

**Darius' POV:**

I hadn't been to Percy's house before. I'd only been on an apparent holiday to America when I got lost and stumbled upon camp. That was where I found out what I was, and they'd told me to keep an eye out for British demigods.

Which I'd obeyed.

I was glad Percy's Mom wasn't the sort to hang around and fuss. She could see we were all tired, and made us all blue hot chocolate (sounds weird but tastes good) and let us fall asleep in peace after.

The next morning, after a breakfast of blueberry pancakes we set out to go into the labyrinth.

Now, I don't know about you, but I'm used to walls. Not dark underground tunnels.

Now, I was NOT afraid. I was just unaccustomed to it. And...not looking for any excuses at all, right?

* * *

**Larka's POV:**

I felt a hand grabbing mine. My eyes had adjusted to the non-existent light, and I saw the hand covered in freckles with a glint by the wrist.

Darius.

_Darius was holding my hand..._

I was glad it was just Alex behind us.

The first corridor we walked down was old, dull except for faint torches hanging from the walls. I mean, small battery-powered torches, some of which batteries had already died. Percy stopped and Annabeth had stopped suddenly. We all did the same.

"Tunnel gets dark." Percy stated. "How about, we get a rope out to stay together." Annabeth dug into her bag for a rope. "Hold the rope with your right hand, and follow the wall with your left hand."

I couldn't help feeling disappointed as Darius hastily pulled his hand away. As the coarse rope, instead of soft skin was all I could feel.

* * *

Eventually, after we'd walked for what seemed like forever, Leo shouted.

"Hey! I feel something!" No sooner as he said that, a blue greek delta glowed, and a ladder dropped down. "Sweet." Leo dropped the rope and began to climb up, before any of us decided whether we should.

Before we knew it, we all stood in bright sunlight.


	8. 08: Ariadne's String

**A/N: ****Can't update very often as I've got quite a bit of schoolwork to do. But anyway, chapter 8 :)**

* * *

**Chapter Eight: Ariadne's String**

**Clarisse's POV:**

I looked at my mobile screen, installed with something from a memory stick I'd forced a scrawny child of Hermes to steal from the Hephaestus cabin.

Basically, I had a tracker on Leo, and I could see their progress.

I heard footsteps, so I quickly ducked behind a bush and held the phone in my pocket. The small light that was peeking through the trees revealed it was just Dan and George. I breathed a sigh of relief (that I would _never_ let them hear) and stepped out from behind the bush.

"It's me!" I snapped quickly when they turned around sharply. "So, they're stopped in New York for the night." Great. Stopping off, when lots could be at risk. So typical of them.

"So...what do we do?" George asked.  
"We get out of camp before morning where everyone will notice we're gone. We go into the maze before them." Obviously.

"But how will we find our way?" _Jeez, George, it's not 21 questions._  
"How are we even going to get in?" Dan joined in with the quizzing.

"I have both sorted. There's an enterance down there-" I pointed to a cluster of rocks, a.k.a Zeus' Fist, "And I have Ariadne's string." I held up some silvery-gold looking thread in triumph. Both looked at it blankly.

I sighed in frustration. _Newbies._ "Ariadne's string." I slowly emphasised every syllable. "It helps you around." I said more quickly, as I heard a screech in the distance.

_Harpies._

* * *

**Leo's POV:**

"What?" I said indignantly, as everybody glared at me.  
"I didn't particularly want to be in a Californian ranch." Snapped Annabeth. I remembered the story they told of an evil cowherd, when they almost got sold to Titans.

"Look. No magical cows." I shrugged. Annabeth made a frustrated sound, causing Percy to glare at me. I sighed.

"Ah well. C'mon, we're all tired and sick of that tunnel. Look, there's a sign saying there's a cafe at this ranch. It all seems harmlessly human." Melody came to my rescue, which was good, because half the demigods around me looked like they wanted to claw my eyeballs out. I gave her a grateful look.

Jacob shrugged. "Sure." And most of us headed towards the ranch.

"Wait." Annabeth gushed. "I have a bad feeling."

Percy slipped his arm around her. "It's alright." They kissed.

"Gross. Get a room. Wait, there's a room at this house, I bet you." I ran ahead, knowing they'd have to follow me.

* * *

**George's POV:**

We hurried down to the rocks. Clarisse felt around them, cursing under her breath. That was when we heard a giggle behind us.

When I turned, I saw a small-looking girl who could be a little older than us. Everything about her had a greenish tint.

"What do _you_ want, Juniper?" Clarisse snapped.

"I know where it is, but if you're going to be so rude-" Juniper shrugged and turned back towards a tree. Then I realised, she was a dryad.

"No! Please, Juniper, tell us." When the dryad turned and met Dan's pleading gaze, I knew she _had_ to give in. It's hard to resist that look; I knew from experience.

"Well, you're actually polite. I might..." Her words trailed off into a sigh.

"Well, I won't tell the harpies." She floated over to us and pointed to a fissure in the rock. Clarisse touched it, and it opened.

As we decended, we heard Juniper's girly voice again. "But, when _Grover_ asks, I'll say." She giggled as the rock closed over us before Clarisse could go and strangle the girl.

* * *

Clarisse checked the monitor, and growled, "They're in California now! Must be daytime up there."

"Guessing time passes differently down here?" Dan suggested.

"Yup." Clarisse sighed. "Ah, well, we'll find them sometime."

* * *

**Larka's POV:**

Leo was the first there. He knocked. The man that answered the door was young. His blonde hair had gel in it.

I stepped forward, knowing Leo would say something he found funny but would get us all sent away.

"Hello." I said. "I was wondering where the cafe is."

He laughed. "And I bet you're wondering where you are, and where the next entrance is."

"Yes." I replied, distracted. "Wait-what entrance?" Darius cut in before he could say anything else. He laughed again.

"Well, you see, I am a God. I do know about labyrinths, and I know you're all Demigods."

Percy suddenly seemed to recognise him. "Apollo?"

"Yup. Come in. Cafe's shut, the house isn't." He smirked, and held the door open for us all.

After having a drink and snack, we decided we should probably get back to the labyrinth.

"As you wish." Apollo shrugged.

In a flash of light, we were back underground.

* * *

After walking through various corridors, we came to what looked like one of those underground army bunkers. Annabeth and Percy spent ages looking around in every corner. Annabeth screamed at one point, but it turned out to be a false alarm, as it was only a spider.

"Looks like an alright place." Darius said.  
"Good. I'm off to sleep." Jacob collapsed onto one of the bunks.  
"I'll take the first watch." Melody volunteered.  
"Ok. Wake me up when you get tired, and I'll take over." Percy said.

I fell asleep, afraid of sleep-talking about Darius.


	9. 09: Impossible

**A/N:**Haven't updated in ages, sorry! This chapter was interesting to write. Oh and by the way the bull leaping part was an idea from an episode of a series called 'Atlantis' that I've been watching on TV recently, which is set in Ancient Greece and I thought it would link in well with this story.

* * *

**Chapter 9: Impossible**

**Melody's POV:**

I was lost in thought, when footsteps echoed down the corridor.

I quickly was alert, and hid beside a small table in the corner. In walked two people. There was a girl and a boy, a little older than I.

"She said, get the half-dryad." The girl hissed. "Yes, I know, smarty-pants." Snapped the boy. I felt cold as I realised the girl was another child of Athena. "Well how are we supposed to know which ones which?"

I weighed up my options. I could just scream out to wake them all up, so these would be outnumbered. I could stay hidden in the shadows and listen to find more information. I could creep up behind them, and knock them out.

I opted for my third choice.

Unfortunately, I didn't realise the metal bunks were reflective. As I neared, they saw my reflection in the metal. Both whipped around, and grabbed me. With two blades at my throat, I ran through my options again.

I screamed as loud as I could, hoping my friends would wake up before they could use the blades.

* * *

**Dan's POV:**

We were all relieved when light appeared ahead of us after walking for ages.

"Don't screw up. It's probably going to be a challenge. If we get through, we'll be catching up." Clarisse gruffly said.

Before we could argue with her, a hand grabbed each of us. Some guards dressed in leather armour were suddenly behind us. As light appeared, I could see a Greek amphitheatre.

Clarisse cursed as she looked through the wooden grating door onto a dusty pitch. I knew then this was no theatre play.

"Bull leaping." Clarisse said. "Try use the head as a spring board. Whatever. Just make sure you jump over the whole bull. They'll let us go then."

The crowd roared as we were pushed into the dirt of the amphitheatre.

* * *

**Percy's POV:**

Out of the habit of being alert and practically ready for battle straight after waking up, I was able to jump out of bed quite quickly and knock the boy and girl away. Annabeth, Leo and Jacob were also just as ready, but the others took longer to wake up. However, eight of us cornered these demigods (unfortunately, both were).

That was before the boy whistled through his fingers.

Six more demigods came running into the room. "One on one with all of you, how's that for fair?" A girl smirked.

Fine by me. Something about that girls smirk annoyed me, so I ended up fighting her.

* * *

The fights extended to a further dim-lit labyrinth corridor. Everyone was well-matched, so it took ages. But after I knocked the girl out, I turned to see how the other battles were going.

Leo had singed the hair of a girl, who'd scurried away, probably mortified at how un-female she looked without hair. Everybody seemed to have won somehow, by either knocking their opponent out or sending them fleeing. I watched as Larka finished her fight by hitting someone around the face with her huge dragon sword. They collapsed with a bruised jaw. The narrow corridor was littered with unconscious bodies at our feet.

A small blade glistened in the leg of a demigod, in a muscle that's supposed to instantly send someone to sleep. That's when we all realised.

"Where's Darius?" Larka asked.

* * *

**George's POV:**

The bull charged. I could feel my pulse beating. I calmed myself, trying to focus.

Three...

...The bull was nearing...

...Two...

...It was lowering it's head...

...One...

...I stepped forward and used it's head as a springboard, powering myself over its body and landing just behind it. Relief flooded through me. I'd made it! I hurried across to the other side, where a guard stopped me.

"_All_ of you must suceed." He grunted.

So I watched as it charged Dan, one of the people I cared about most.

* * *

Dan joined me beside the guard. His arm was limp. He looked like he was in pain.

"Ouch." I said when I looked at it. It was clearly broken from his landing on it awkwardly.

I had no doubts about Clarisse jumping the bull. She'd trained enough.

When she joined us, she growled at the guard. "Let us through, or feel the wrath of Ares."

We stepped back into the maze.

* * *

**Alex's POV:**

Everyone dragged their feet as we walked along. The mood was glum. We didn't bother to examine the next room-most of us, anyway.

"Look." Jacob said.

Everybody followed his gaze to where he was pointing.

In the middle of the empty black room, there was a small jet altar. On the altar stood a cup.

The strange thing was, the cup was full of fire and water. Both at the same time, fire burning underwater.

"That's impossible." I whispered.


	10. 10: Fire and Water

**A/N:**Final chapter of this story...enjoy :)

* * *

**Chapter 10: Fire and Water**

**Leo's POV:**

Curiosity always seems to get the better of me. Like, one minute I was stood with everyone...the next I was face-to-face with the cup.

I ignored the groans behind me.

I was somehow entranced at how the flames flickered so freely in the water.

"Fine then." Someone sounded annoyed, but everyone seemed to follow them anyway.

The cup was surrounded by people, when I realised something was odd.

The dim light from the corridor had faded. I was alert suddenly, away from my trance.

"Congrats, Leo." Annabeth snapped.  
"Well done bro." Jacob looked around. I followed his gaze. The walls seemed narrower, and more sheer. The floor was black. The ceiling seemed to be invisible. It was colder. Everything smelt strange.

"What's going on now?" Melody asked.

A laugh echoed through the room.

"I am, dearies." The woman who stepped out of the shadows could have been twenty or fifty. It was hard to tell if her hair was black or silver. Her face was pale and her features sharp. One eye was gold, and the other blood red.

"And you are...?" Alex asked, indicating a reply.

"Hecate. Goddess of Magic." She laughed again, an eerie, evil laugh, tossing her hair.

"What do you want?" Percy said.

"Oh, it's you. The one who killed my _empousai_ a while back." She snarled these words. Percy just glared at her.

"Yeah, well answer me, what do you want?" He clicked his pen, then the bronze blade appeared to glow in the light.

"Simples. My minions-I'm not talking about those yellow things by the way-are bringing what I need. Basically, I need a type of blood mixed into this. Then I'll use all of you to help me. The potion after this blood will be strong-if you all help me make it into an atomic bomb, which you _will_ do, Olympus will explode. There. Job done." She laughed again.

"What blood?" Percy continued glaring.

"Oh, you know, just a half-dryad." Someone stumbled-no, was pushed-out of the shadows. In the faint light, I recognised Darius. So _that's_ what he wasn't telling us. His wrists were bound, but I saw a glint under his sleeve. He could escape, alright.

"You're crazy." Alex said.

Hecate turned on her. Darius winked at Larka as he cut his bonds.

Then he launched himself onto Hecate's back, driving the blade into her throat.

She let out a screech, then the whole room began to spiral, as if there was a hurricane.

* * *

**Darius' POV:**

I woke up, disorientated. We were in a dusty room. It reminded me of an attic. Sort of.

I saw somebody different in a corner. Her hair was literally on fire. She had a bronze leg, and that of a donkey.

An empousai.

Percy drew his sword. However, when she turned to face us, her eyes were purple, not red.

"Greetings. I'd suggest you put that _thing_ away, as I don't mean any harm but if I'm hurt, I _will_ fight back." Percy reluctantly put Riptide away, his hand still in his pocket, probably still holding the pen.

"It appears half dryad blood mixed with fire and water doesn't only destroy olympus." She remarked. "As for my _creator_, she'll be back in a few millenia." She turned to me. "You must have grazed yourself whilst escaping. Your blood went into the water. The room reacted, so here you are, in the labyrinth again."

"O-kay." I replied.

She sighed. "Well, I'm probably going to get killed. May I ask a favour?" She looked at Percy. He nodded.

"Can you stab me, here." She pointed at her hand. "Right through. It'll end me painlessly."

He rose, clicking the pen. Riptide elongated again. She held out her hand. He averted his eyes as the sword was impaled through her hand.

She froze, then disappeared, leaving the scent of fire behind.

* * *

I looked at Larka. She was already looking at me.

"Why hide the dryadness?"

I shrugged. "Guess some people might have laughed, comparing it to godlyness."

"I think it's special." She replied. We found ourselves nose to nose. Laughter echoed through the room.

"Snog, snog." Melody began to chant. Percy, Jacob and Leo joined her.

So we did.

* * *

**Melody's POV:**

Once they'd finished, everyone exchanged glances.

_How would we leave?_

But then, the door opened. I don't know if I was relieved or not when Clarisse stepped in, flanked by George and Dan. An unscathed George and Dan.

"There was a son of Zeus down there. No need to worry about me." Dan smirked. I felt colour rise to my cheeks.

"Well, I guess I'll have to take you back in the chariot." Clarisse rolled her eyes, touching the wall.

* * *

So here we are. On a flying war chariot, on the way back to Camp. I'm in between George and Dan. Darius and Larka are snogging (again) in the back. On film by Leo, to go on YouTube.

Well, this had been an eventful Summer.


End file.
